


Dog Days Are Over

by doctovstrange



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Dogs, Fluff, Heartache, Jogging, M/M, Romance, Romantic Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-21
Updated: 2019-06-21
Packaged: 2020-05-16 02:11:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,172
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19308514
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/doctovstrange/pseuds/doctovstrange
Summary: A couple of months into living together, Sam notices that Bucky goes jogging, always making sure that Sam doesn't go at the same time. Sam decides he's had enough and one morning invites Bucky to go jogging with him.He doesn't predict what will happen next.





	Dog Days Are Over

**Author's Note:**

> This started as a headcanon on twitter *cough*velvetbvcky*cough* and a couple of people asked me to write it as a fic so, here it is. I hope you enjoy!

Sam didn’t have the luxury of being pumped full of super serum, but he wasn’t an idiot.

 

With how hard Bucky tries to hide things from him, Sam thinks he forgets that he used to be a pararescue, so he’s had more than his fair share of hiding things where people least expect it. He also knows when people are trying to avoid you.

 

So, he knows that, when it comes to his jogging schedule, Bucky won’t admit straight up that he waits to hear the sounds of Sam’s key in their front door before he decides he should go out for a jog too, leaving Sam alone in the flat.

 

At first, Sam tried to ignore it. But when it started happening every time Sam jogged, he _knew_ that there was something up with his flatmate, and he was determined to become friends with the former assassin. They’d been in that weird limbo where they were kind of friends for too long, in Sam’s opinion, and he wanted that to change.

 

It was time to become Barnes’ friend.

* * *

 

Step One: get Bucky to agree to go jogging with him

 

This was easier than Sam had initially thought it would be.

 

He got up later than usual one day, hoping to catch Bucky by surprise (he was Captain America now and he deserved to sleep in, the world outside be damned). He caught Bucky by surprise alright.

 

What Sam hadn’t been expecting was the one-armed super-soldier, who didn’t move even when Sam crashed face first into his chest, to be standing with his nose almost pressed to his bedroom door.

 

His right arm reached out to push Sam back slightly. Sam hoped that it was to make sure that the pair of them didn’t fall over, and not because he wanted to start something with him. _Bucky_ had been the one standing outside _Sam’s_ bedroom door, after all.

 

“Good morning, Barnes,” Sam said, his hand coming to cover his mouth to stifle a yawn, “and to what do I owe the pleasure of you standing outside my door at this time of the morning?”

 

Barnes’ face remained passive for a moment, the only thing giving away that he was thinking was the slight crease of his eyebrows. Sam enjoyed it when he said something that made the little line between Bucky’s appear. It didn’t happen as often as he’d like, he had to admit, but when it did appear, he couldn’t help but feel a little bit proud of himself. It meant that Bucky was truly paying attention to what Sam was saying to him, and that meant a lot.

 

“You’re supposed to be out jogging,”

 

Sam raised his eyebrows, “I’m not _supposed_ to do anything,” he patted Bucky’s right shoulder softly, and walked around him. He needed coffee if this was going where he thought it was going.

 

After turning their coffee machine on (being Captain America did have some luxuries, he supposed), he turned and leaned against the kitchen counter, expecting Bucky to still be standing outside his room or having gone into his own.

 

He was in neither of those places, instead having chosen to stand right behind Sam so that Sam almost headbutted him when he turned around. Which was quite impressive considering Bucky was taller than Sam, meaning that he’d leaned down to stare at Sam in the exact way he knew riled Sam up. Like he wanted to crawl inside Sam’s head and never come out again.

 

Sam knew that Bucky _loved_ science and was thriving in his new life with the technology of the 21stcentury, so it probably wasn’t too big of a leap to assume that if that technology ever became possible that Bucky, looking at Sam the way he’s looking at him now, would use it to make himself part of Sam’s consciousness.

 

Sam tried not to think about that too much.

 

It was then that Sam noticed Bucky was dressed in his own jogging gear, sans his vibranium arm.

 

The first time he saw Bucky’s arm casually placed on their sofa, he’d screamed. In his defence, who wouldn’t scream when a random arm was just on their sofa? Bucky had apologised to him for that and explained that sometimes he just liked to leave that part of him behind for a while. Sam understood.

 

Now whenever Sam sees Bucky without his arm, he knows that Bucky just doesn’t want to deal with it that day. And Sam is fine with that, as long as the arm didn’t find itself on the sofa again.

 

The sound of the coffee machine behind him distracted him for a moment, but it didn’t stop the silence that hung between the two of them.

 

“I thought you were supposed to be going jogging, Barnes,”

 

Bucky’s eyes narrowed slightly, “I was waiting for you to go,” he said, pushing his shoulders back in an attempt to make himself look as tall as possible.

 

Sam chewed his lip, “you what?”

 

“You always go for a jog before me,”

 

“Because you always wait for me to get back before you decide you should go jogging too,” Bucky’s face was a picture, and Sam couldn’t help but gloat at the thought of catching Bucky out when he was least expecting it, “Oh yeah, don’t think I haven’t noticed the way you almost crash into me in a haste to get out of the flat when I’m walking through the door,” Sam shook his head with a laugh, “for an ex-assassin, you’re not as sneaky as you think,”

 

For a moment, a pout appeared on Bucky’s face, but he quickly masked it with a look of indifference.

 

“So what if I do?” he said petulantly, tucking his arm into the pocket of his hoodie.

 

“Barnes, do you want to come jogging with me?”

 

Sam turned away to make them both coffee (black for himself and black with two sugars for Bucky), so he missed the look of surprise on Bucky’s face. The man in question’s face dropped slightly towards his chest to hide the small smile that had appeared against his will.  

 

When Sam turned back to him, still apparently waiting for an answer, Bucky raised his chin and simply said, “I’ll be waiting for you,” and left for his bedroom, grabbing his coffee on the way.

 

Yep. A lot better than Sam was expecting.

 

Almost too well.

 

* * *

 

Step Two: get Bucky to talk to him on their jogs

 

This one was a little more difficult.

 

After getting himself ready to face the world, he found Bucky leaning against the door frame with a small smirk on his lips.

 

“What are you smirking at?” Sam asked, suspicious.

 

“Are you sure you wanna do this, Wilson?” Bucky asked, the smirk on his face growing slightly.

 

“Why wouldn’t I?” Sam crossed his arms over his chest.

 

“Just wondering if you’ll be able to keep up, that’s all,”

 

Bucky, looking very proud of himself, jogged out of their apartment and down the stairs, leaving a gobsmacked Sam behind. Bucky didn’t quip him often but when he did, Sam was never prepared for the words that would come out of his mouth.

 

Oh he’d show that old man what keeping up looked like.

 

Sam, having experienced what it was like to go running with a super soldier, had expected Bucky to run ahead and lap him without a care in the world. Especially with what he’d said back in the flat.

 

Bucky didn’t do that. In fact, he never left Sam’s side, even though it was clear that he could have done the same thing that Steve did. Sam wouldn’t have minded. Honest.

 

That doesn’t mean that he said anything to Sam, even though he could have done. So Sam made it his mission to get him to open up to him, even if it meant that he’s be the one that was more out of breath by the end of the run.

 

He started off with small talk.

 

“Hey, Barnes, what’s your favourite colour?”

 

But Bucky wouldn’t bite, continuing to stare ahead, sometimes merely humming in response, and smirking whenever Sam got home and claimed that he was dying. For real this time.

 

It wasn’t until their tenth outing that Bucky finally said something.

 

“What’s your favourite flavour of ice cream?” wasn’t a question that Sam had ever imagined Bucky would ask him, but neither was the tub of chocolate brownie Ben & Jerry’s that appeared in their freezer the next day.

 

“If you had a pet, what would you name it?”

 

“Obviously, when I get a bird, I’m gonna call it Redwing. Birds are the superior pet. What about you?”

 

“I’ve always wanted a cat called Alpine, but a dog could be nice too,”

 

* * *

Step Three: stop Bucky from turning their jogs into a q&a session all about Sam

 

Sam thought about his plan and how it had backfired.

 

It was supposed to be an opportunity for Sam to find out all that he could about Bucky, not the other way around. Although he was enjoying the almost constant stream of ice cream that Bucky seemed determined to keep them supplied with.

 

Bucky had managed to turn the tables on him, that was for sure. Asking Sam so many questions he thought his brain might melt out of his ear.

 

Eventually, Sam gave up answering because the thinking and running combo made him even more out of breath than normal. He just wanted a peaceful run where he didn’t feel inferior to the person he was running with. He really needed to get better running partners.

 

What’s even stranger than Bucky still jogging with Sam (even though he’s not getting any real benefit from it, from what Sam can see) and asking him all these questions is the fact that Bucky still goes out on his own jogs.

 

When Sam gets home from grabbing them the coffee Bucky likes from the local coffee shop, because Sam likes to support local businesses, he doesn’t get home to a ‘thank you Sam, you really are the best friend a guy could have’, it’s to a ‘going jogging’, which isn’t even a proper grammatical sentence thank you very much.

 

In fact, Bucky seems to spend more time jogging than he does anything else which made Sam think. Is Bucky really going jogging or is he going out to see someone that he doesn’t want Sam to know about?

 

Sam tried not think about that.

 

He didn’t want to think about Bucky with someone else.

 

If Bucky was going jogging, why would he bother going with Sam as well?

 

The question plagued Sam’s mind when he tried to sleep, or while he tried to answer all of Bucky’s questions. One day, he decided just to ask.

 

Sam was out of breath after deciding, not only to run faster than he thought he would ever be capable of but making sure that he was just in front of Bucky at all times, to run up the stairs to their flat. Once at the top, he collapsed against their door, his body screaming at him for how much work he’d made it do.

 

Bucky had followed him up the stairs slowly, his head pointed towards the ground. Just as he reached the top step, Sam asked, “why do you keep running with me if you go out by yourself anyway?” Bucky didn’t answer him straight away, his fingers fiddling with the keys in his hands, staring at the numbers on the front door, “Barnes, you know you could have just said-“

 

“I just wanted an excuse to get to know you,” he said so quietly Sam barely heard him, leaning against the banister. He turned his head away, refusing to look Sam in the eye, “if you want me to stop bothering you, I can,”

 

“You do know me, Barnes,” at least he’d hoped he did. After all, they’d lived together now for almost a year and there had been plenty of movies nights and long walks to try out the new restaurants in the area. Both meant lots of talking, whether it was friendly debates or playful arguments about how dreadful Sam’s taste in films was.

 

“Not in the way I want to,”

 

A tension had creeped around them, engulfing them whole and almost suffocating the remaining oxygen out of Sam’s system.

 

He heaved himself up from the floor, his legs telling him that the floor was not as comfy as they’d hoped and held his hand out for the keys. Bucky had to turn towards him, so Sam saw the look that was on Bucky’s face. A look that he hoped he never had to see ever again.

 

Staring at his friend, and the way his head hangs like a dog being told off by its owner, Sam can feel his heart break. He realises that, in that moment, Bucky has made himself more vulnerable than Sam has ever seen him. And it was all because of him.

 

Sam stepped inside their flat slowly, holding the door open for Bucky, but refusing to look him in the eye. Bucky said nothing. He just walked, shoulders hunched, into his bedroom and shut the door softly behind him.

 

This is wrong.

 

“Why can’t you keep your mouth shut, Wilson?” Sam mutters to himself once he’s safely tucked away in his bedroom.

 

He let himself slide down the door onto the floor again, his head in his hands. He hadn’t meant to hurt Bucky like that, especially since it was the only time he’s ever known Bucky to open up to him properly about anything. And Bucky was the kind of guy that Sam struggled to read. Steve, on the other hand, could read Bucky like a book…

 

 _Steve_.

 

Sam missed his friend.

 

Things hadn’t been the same between them since Steve decided to go back and be with Peggy, but that didn’t mean that Sam missed him any less. Steve always knew when to give the advice that Sam needed, even if it wasn’t what he wanted to hear, and that what he wanted right now. These days, Steve mostly just slept.

 

Bucky went to visit him sometimes, but he’d always come back looking like a ghost- _wait._

 

Before Thanos, Bucky had been the happiest Sam had seen him. He was surrounded by technology that helped ground him, and whenever he wanted, his best friend and only connection to the past would come and visit him.

 

Steve was gone now though. And so was Bucky’s link to the Bucky Barnes he’d been before. Before the Winter Soldier had taken over. Perhaps Bucky just needed someone else to-

 

“ _Not in the way I want to,_ ”

 

_Oh._

Nice one, Wilson.

* * *

 

Step Four: be the person that Bucky needs

 

From there, Sam made it his sole mission to get to know Bucky the way that Bucky wanted him to. He also wanted to make sure that Bucky got to know him too. It’s what the other man had wanted after all. It’s what _he_ wanted.

 

 _For how long had he wanted that_ Sam had asked himself over and over, trying to pinpoint a time where Bucky had shown that he wanted to be at least friends with Sam.

 

 _At least friends_.

 

Whenever Bucky asked him a question, Sam would make sure that he gave as in depth an answer as he could, hoping that he didn’t make himself sound more pretentious than he was. Every time he gave an answer that Bucky like, it brought a little smile to Bucky’s face. A smile that Sam wanted to see more and more as time went on.

 

He found that the flat was too quiet when Bucky went jogging, or when he left at all in fact, so Sam made the decision to get a dog. He knew that Bucky would have preferred a cat but they lived on the fifth floor and he’d rather walk the dog than try and get a cat out of their flat. Maybe in their future.

 

_Their future._

When Bucky got home that day, looking tired after spending the morning with Steve, Sam told him his plan. They were going to get a dog.

 

The excitement on Bucky’s face was almost too much for Sam to handle.

 

This was the best idea that Sam had ever had.

 

Period.

 

If Sam had thought he’d seen Bucky happy before, then he was sorely mistaken. The moment Bucky’s eyes had laid on all the animals, pressing their noses through the wires to get as close to them as they possibly could, his face had become as bright as the sun. All the worry lines that Sam thought would never disappear were gone within seconds, making Bucky look a lot younger than he was.

 

The long-haired man knelt softly besides one cage, his eyes trailing over the dog trying to escape from inside, “hey buddy,” he said softly, his vibranium hand coming up to rest against the wires.

 

Looking over Bucky’s shoulder, Sam saw that the dog was a staffie, a breed that was believed to be one of the most dangerous for people to own. He guessed that’s why the little guy was in here and not having a good life outside of the cage.

 

Tears came to Sam’s eyes when the staffie started to lick at Bucky’s hand, and he realised why Bucky was so drawn to this particular dog. People didn’t trust staffies, but then again they didn’t ever really give them a chance.

 

People took one look at Bucky’s vibranium arm and they decided who he was and what he was capable of.

 

That’s when Sam knew.

 

He loved Bucky.

 

God help him, but he really fucking did.

 

When Bucky had looked towards Sam for his approval, tears now in his own eyes too, Sam simply nodded.

 

Luckily, the woman behind the desk recognised him and told them that they could take Bobby (Bucky’s idea, not Sam’s) home with them today, even if it wasn’t what she would normally allow. Bucky’s smile had grown even wider, taking Bobby’s lead tightly in his hand.

 

Bobby led the way, apparently, dragging Bucky out of the building and into the car park. Just before Sam left, the woman told him to “get in there before someone else does”, and, do you know what? He decided to do just that.

 

They had walked in companionable silence until, “why are you doing all this for me, Sam?”

 

That had been the first time Bucky had ever used his first name.

 

Sam stopped, taking a hold of Bucky’s hand and pulling him close so that he could look into his eyes.

 

He shrugged, “I just wanted an excuse to get to know you,”

 

So, when he leaned in and placed his lips against Bucky’s softly, and the other man hadn’t pulled away, Sam had considered his plan a success.

 

Finally.

* * *

 

Step Five: fall in love.

 

And that’s just what Sam and Bucky did.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading, please leave a comment below if you have time :)


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